Baskin-Robbins

March 6, 2019

We are retail experience boys and girls living in a retail experience world. In case you’ve missed it, today’s consumers want a side of experience with their retail entrée. In fact, in some cases the store experience is more important than the product itself. It doesn’t matter if people are shopping for shoes, groceries or gas, the brands that are winning in 2019 are thinking about ways to make that experience memorable from start to finish.

We were recently issued a challenge from our Dunkin/Baskin-Robbins’ clients. The major focus: create the next generation Baskin-Robbins ice cream shop. The foundation of our solution: upgrade the customer experience.

Baskin-Robbins is an iconic ice cream brand. People have celebrated birthdays, soccer victories and summertime with one of the 31 flavors or a decorated ice cream cake. Our research found, however, that customers were celebrating those big occasions with Baskin-Robbins, but they weren’t coming back for the everyday moments when it’s time to just treat themselves. We found that it was time to amp up the fun and make the experience more memorable so that customers would want to come back more often.

We started with the space itself. We added more seating to allow for more groups to fit inside the shop. In addition, we extended the space outside by creating a patio that was accessible via a garage door, connecting the indoor space with an outdoor space. Next up was the treats. While Baskin-Robbins is known for so many treats on the menu, that can make for a difficult time deciding what to order and how to order. We helped create a simple three-step process: choose the vehicle (cone, cup, shake), choose the flavor, then top it off.

The last step in making the experience even more memorable was to consider the design of the space that surrounds the customer. We took genuine Baskin-Robbins elements like the pink spoon and amplified that bright color throughout the space. We wanted the shop to feel like a unique piece of the community, so we adorned the major wall of the space with a mural dedicated to the town. It also doesn’t hurt that the wall is a perfect spot for ice cream selfies and group shots ready made for Instagram.

In the case of Baskin-Robbins, our design of the next generation store proves that today’s consumers want a fun experience with their retail dessert. We had a blast serving up memorable moments that will keep customers coming back for all the flavors.